One Day
by grayautumnsky13
Summary: For OQ Happy Ending Week, Day 1 (Monday)- Bandit OQ: When Regina has a near encounter with Leopold, Robin is compelled to share his feelings for her.


The fire pit at the center of the camp crackles and pops as she sinks down onto a log in front of it, breathing in the smoky smell and doing her best to enjoy the warmth it brings as she reminds herself of why she joined Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men, reminding herself that what happened that afternoon was just a fluke. **  
**

Since joining them, she wasn't often alone–something that proved to be both a blessing and a curse–and that afternoon, they'd gone out on a hunt. Winter was coming and they needed to stock up and prepare to hunker down for the winter. She'd spent her morning collecting berries to boil into jams and though they'd asked if she wanted to tag along, she was already elbow deep in a pot of wild blueberries. She told them she wanted to finish what she started, and truthfully, she was glad for a little time to herself.

As the jam cooked over the open fire, she'd collected more wood to help smoke whatever fish and meat the men returned with, and she put it in a heap next to the smokehouse. When the pot of blueberry jam was cooked, she moved onto the next of raspberries, letting the first cool off to the side of the fire as she mended her coat and socks, and by the time second pot was through, she'd already poured the first into jars.

She'd looked around a bit aimlessly. She'd gotten used to the hustle and bustle of the camp, and she'd gotten used to the company. It felt strange being on her own–and then, a little grin edged onto her lips as an idea bubbled up inside of her.

It wasn't long before she was at the riverbank, stripped down to nothing as she floated in the cool water. There wasn't much that she missed about her former life, but she missed the chance to have regular baths. When she was a little girl her nanny bought her scented soaps and would brush her hair for hours after her baths, and in that time, her worries seemed to just float away…

And that's when she heard the trumpets.

Her heart nearly stopped as she hurried behind a fallen branch, doing her best to stay silent and afloat as the king's carriage rounded a bend–and though she didn't believe in a higher power, she found herself praying to any and all that might take pity on her.

But they hadn't, and the carriage came to a stop along the river.

She tensed as as King Leopold got out. He and another man led the horses to the edge of the river to drink, and she shed her breath as he took a few steps toward her. She sank lower until her shoulders were submerged and tears of worry burned in her eyes as she thought about what would happen if he found her–and then, a twig snapped in the grass behind her.

She whirled around, sending ripples through the water, certain she'd been caught.

But when she turned, she wasn't facing the king. Instead, Robin was standing at the edge of the bank with his hand outstretched to her. She hesitated for a moment, suddenly very aware of her nakedness, biting down on her lip as her eyes shifted to her clothes on a rock that was dangerously close to the king's carriage.

Rolling his eyes Robin pulled a blanket from his satchel, looking up momentarily before opening it to her and closing his eyes. Still, she hesitated, but as she heard Leopold laugh out at something his man had said, her heart nearly jumped out of her chest and propelled her out of the water and into the open blanket. Robin wrapped it around her, his arms going with the blanket as he whispered a low _I've got you_ in her ear. He offered a wink as he released her, then took her by the hand–and just like that, they disappeared before Leopold could even notice the ripples as they extended to toward him…

"I didn't think anyone would be up," Robin says as he comes out from his tent, a blanket around his shoulders.

"Oh," she murmurs, watching him carefully. "I couldn't sleep."

He nods. "Same," he admits as he sits down on the log beside her and holds his hands out over the fire. "I can't seem to get comfortable."

"It is chilly."

He nods. "That's not it."

"No?" she asks, swallowing hard as she looks to him, watching as his eyes shift to meet hers.

"You need to–"

"Don't lecture me," she cuts in. "I survived quite a while on my own and–" she stops, looking away. She shouldn't do this. She shouldn't snap at him. None of what happened was his fault, and if anything, he'd prevented something terrible from happening to her. "Sorry."

A little grin tugs onto her lips. "Don't worry about it." Sighing, she nods and focuses her attention back on the fire. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Without looking at him, she shakes her head. "No," she lies.

"Regina–"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Fine. We won't talk."

She expects him to leave, but he doesn't. He just sits there beside her, staring into the fire, watching the flames flicker.

"You're… not going to go back to bed?"

"No."

"But–"

"Are you?"

She blinks. "I can't sleep," she admits.

"But you don't want to talk about it."

She does–and that scares her.

She didn't have a reason not to trust him, but no matter what he did or said, no matter how kind he was, she couldn't stifle the little voice in her head that told her to be leery of him. She accepted his kindness, though, and when he'd offered her an invitation to join his band of Merry Men, she'd accepted that, too–but her motives had been self-serving, and still, she kept him at an arm's length.

Life had taught her that's what she needed to do to survive and she knew that she was safer in a group than out on her own. The Merry Men welcomed her easily into the group, and sometimes, she found herself wanting to let her guard down–especially where Robin Hood was concerned. But she'd been burned before–burned by those she'd least expected–and each time it happened, it hurt a little more, and regardless of whatever kindness Robin or any of his men extended to her, no matter how many times they told her she was part of their family, she had to protect herself.

Little by little though, that had been getting harder, especially where Robin was concerned. She found herself feeling things she'd long forgotten she could feel and wanting him in ways she'd never wanted another person. He made her smile and laugh; he made her feel safe.

"Why did you get up?"

His brow arches. "I saw you sitting here all alone and…"

"You thought I'd let myself get kidnapped?"

"No," he's quick to say. "I just thought you might like the company," he tells her, shrugging. "Besides, like I said, I couldn't sleep."

Chewing at her lip, she hesitates. "W-why not?"

"Because I keep thinking about what might've happened had I not heard those trumpets."

"Oh–"

"And I might've lost you."

At that, she scoffs. "I don't see how that would affect–"

"I could have lost you without ever getting the chance to tell you how I feel."

Her lips part and her heart beats a bit faster as a shy little grin edges onto his lips. "What?"

"It's… not really a secret."

"Robin–"

"You know that I care about you."

She nods. "For reasons neither of us can explain."

"I can," he admits as he looks back to her. "It's really not that difficult."

"No?"

"No," he murmurs, shaking his head. "In fact, it's quite simple." She draws in a shaky breath as a smile tugs at the corner of her mouth. "I'm in love with you."

"Y-you are?"

He nods. "And I know that you're…not quite there," he tells, his voice cautious, her as her eyes widen. "But I'm hoping that one day, you… you might be."

Her mouth is dry and her heart is racing–and despite that little voice in the back of her head that's telling her all the ways that this could go wrong, she finds her cheeks flushing as a smile spread across her lips. A little laugh escapes her as she bites down on her lip as their eyes meet. She wants to tell him that's she's not as far off as he thinks she is, that she thinks she might love him too, but she can't quite find the words–so, instead, she pushes herself forward and kisses him, giggling softly against his mouth.

She can tell that he didn't quite expect her to kiss him, but it doesn't take him long to settle into the kiss. His hand pushes into to her hair as his tongue parts her lips, gently swirling around hers as he breathes her in, filling her with a warmth she hasn't quite felt before, a warmth that comes with a sense of belonging, a sense of acceptance and what she's always imagined home might feel like–and when he pulls back, his breath ragged and his smile bright, her walls she's spent years building up around herself beginning to crumble.


End file.
